


First Dates

by toomanycups



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Dating, First Dates, Fluff, Gen, Nanu is old and doesn't know how to deal with feelings, Reader is gender neutral, Romance, Smooching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-11 14:46:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8988793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toomanycups/pseuds/toomanycups
Summary: Reader has been visiting Nanu every week for the past couple months and Nanu wants to know why. A short drabble series on Reader and Nanu's developing relationship.





	1. First Date

**Author's Note:**

> luv this old cat man i've been out of writing for a bit so i'm trying to get the feel of things again and trying to figure out Nanu's character :3c

“Officer Nanu, are you aware of the regulations against having so many Pokemon in your home at one time?”

You had been visiting the outskirts of Po Town for a couple months now. During an inopportune run-in with Team Skull while on your way to a Pokemon Center, you had found a strange relationship with the old man that patrols Po Town. He stepped in, shoulders drooped and clothes soaked from the rain, to tell the kids to scram. His words weren’t threatening, but something in his gaze seemed mildly off putting. The grunts didn’t see the fun in pestering you anymore with “the geezer” around, so they left.

“What? Them?” He didn’t meet your eyes when he spoke, instead nonchalantly gesturing to his Meowths, “They’re on duty, it’s fine.” You chuckled a bit at that. He was so aloof, but still all there. Seeing him made you happy, which is why you come around once a week to bring him lunch.

Placing his meal on the counter, you circle around to hand out berries to the Meowths. A couple lingered at your ankles looking for more. Shaking your head, you emptied your pockets of treats to them. Nanu raised an eyebrow at you, “You know, they have gotten needier since you started coming around. I can see why now.” He caught a glimpse of the meal you brought him, all nice and wrapped up. He hesitated opening it, but ended up doing it anyway. Panko crusted Magikarp, a side of Krabby, and some rice. There was even a small container of sauce, most likely for the rice. Or was it for the Krabby? There weren’t many of those in Alola. Nanu questioned to himself if you got it at a market here or had it shipped in. Nanu stared at it for a moment unsure of what to make of it. These meals started out with simple sandwiches and now they’re full dinners. He could feel himself grow anxious as he placed the lid back on the dish.

He eyed you from over his shoulder, you were still messing around with his Meowths. His anxiety grew a little bit more, but he couldn’t exactly pin as to why. Defeated, he let out a sigh.

“You don’t have to do this.”

You stopped feeding the Meowths so you could look at him. “What was that, Na-“

“You don’t have to do this. All of this.” He motioned to the dish and his Pokemon. “Don’t think I’m not appreciative, but,” He paused to let his shoulders slump a bit. “Why?”

You straightened up, not letting your eyes meet his. “Well, I just thought,” Oh boy you were starting to fidget, and why are your hands suddenly sweaty? “I just thought some thanks were in order for helping me out with those Team Skull guys a couple months back.” You wearily smiled up at him, and he returned your look with a blank stare, an eyebrow suddenly raising. This cop was going to find you out.

Sure, yes, you did have a crush on him. A little one. That made you want to visit him every day. And the days spent away from him were hard. And you may have missed his company when you were apart. And you couldn’t wait to hear more of his stories from his trainer days. And the fact that he was far older than you. And that grin that made you want to grab his shirt and pull him in for a k—

You realized you had gotten lost in thought and you two were just staring at each other. A blush crept onto your face. This was embarrassing. Nanu sighed once again.

“Listen, _kid_ ,” You felt a stab through your heart at the word, “I appreciate all of this. But, you really don’t have to.” He began staring at the ground and walked past you to the couch. Taking a seat, he leaned his elbows on his spread knees, looking back up at you.

“All of these meals, and your company… It’s too much. You don’t owe me anything.” His red eyes stared into yours, holding your focus. “You don’t have to come around anymore.”

You felt like crying. Did he honestly not want you there? You could feel the tears well up, and you hardened your fists. _Kid_. That’s what he called you. You were going to prove him wrong. You marched right up to him and placed your hands on your hips.

“Alright, _geezer_ , you listen here,” You saw something flicker in his eyes when you called him geezer, but continued, “I don’t make this hike here every week for nothing. I happen to like being here. I like your company. I like your stories. I like your Meowths. And you know what,” You gasped before you could say anything else and crossed your arms defensively, biting your lip. You caught yourself. You were almost about to let it slip. You stared down at him, his lips tugged up a bit as he watched you expectantly.

“Yes? Was there something else?” He egged. He seemed so sure of himself in that moment, probably still hung up on the geezer comment. You have never seen him this confident. You decided.

Screw it.

“I, I _like_ you.”

You searched his face waiting for an answer. He looked like he wasn’t breathing, sitting still as a statue. Did you break Nanu?

“N, Nanu?” You were about to take a step forward when he blinked, seeming to pull himself back into the present. A pause and then he quickly rose from the couch, crossing the living room to the counter.

You were confused. You just confessed and he was completely ignoring you. Stepping over to question him, you realized the lid to the meal you brought him was off. Nanu had retrieved two forks from a side cabinet and grabbed the dish. He took a deep breath and a moment to pause. Turning to you, dish and forks in hand, and you could see a slight flush to his face. You tilted your head to the side in question and were about to open your mouth when he beat you to the punch.

“So,” A pause, “I know you made this for me, but the hike here must have brewed an appetite.” He was looking everywhere but you, trying to avoid the confrontation most likely. “Share it with me,” he looked down at you with his glowing red eyes. His eyes were always lidded and seemed uncaring, but they held so much vulnerability in this moment. You smiled at him, reaching out to grab a fork from him, brushing your hand on his along the way. A shock wave ran up Nanu’s spine when you touched him and he couldn’t stop himself from grinning down at you.

He hasn’t felt something like this in a long time. He’s not going to admit that to you just yet, though.

After all, it’s only the first date.


	2. Distant Lover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You decide to confront Nanu and his non-pda ways.

There was a different feel to your visits with Nanu.

He had become rigid in his mannerisms and a lot quieter than usual. One of the many "incidences" happened just the other day. You two were sitting on the couch watching TV and you moved to touch his hand. You know, a normal relationship thing to do. Without even looking, he shot his hands up straight in the air. There was a pause as you stared him down in silence. Leaning to the side, he pretended to stretch, but you weren’t going to be fooled so easily. You weren't sure if he was being weird, or if it was something else. You were starting to worry that he wasn't as into you as you thought he was.

During this next visit, you _needed_ to set him straight.

The station came into sight as you crossed the darkening terrain. It was always raining over near Po town. You tried to avoid puddles in the grass, but it was almost impossible. As you took shelter under his doorstep, you started to shiver. You wanted to say it was just from the cool breeze combined with the rain, and not the fact you were confronting a man probably twice your age on the societal rules of a relationship.

Giving the door a couple knocks, you waited. A couple moments passed and it didn’t seem like anyone was going to answer the door.

“Maybe he’s out,” you concluded to yourself. Checking the handle, the door gently swung open. Unlocked. That's pretty unsafe especially living next to Po Town, but you decided that was another lecture for another time. Anyway, you remembered something about Alolan hospitality. Everyone seemed to keep their doors open.

His small cult gathering of Meowths began to swarm your legs, recognizing you immediately. With a smile, you reached down to pet them after removing your rain coat and placing it off to the side.

“Hey, Nanu! You home?” With curiosity, you headed towards the couch, taking a peek around. A low rustling noise could be heard from one of the far rooms, and a groan signaling that you weren’t alone. “Oops, must have caught him during a nap. This guy really is just a Meowth,” you mumbled to yourself as you took a seat. The sound of shuffling feet was heard till at last the man of the hour had arrived in all his glory. Still half-asleep, Nanu scratched his back as his eyes adjusted to the lit room.

A smile found its way on to your face without meaning to. Even with your doubt, this man gave you the Butterfrees in your stomach. Now realizing who was sitting in his house, his eyebrows accustomed themselves further up on his forehead. His expression stayed neutral, but you could tell he was a bit shocked to see you there. He spoke your name, but it came out a groggy whisper most likely due to just waking up. Clearing his throat, he tried again.

“You’re here. Wasn’t expecting you today,” A smirk, “But I can’t say it’s not a nice surprise.”

You could feel the heat rising to your face. What was he doing being flirty all of a sudden when he had been rejecting your advances only a few days ago? You let out a breath you didn’t know you had been holding.

“Yeah, I was in the neighborhood and decided to stop by. Did I… interrupt something?”

Nanu stood in silence for a bit, before making his way over to sit next to you.

“Nah. I was about to get up anyway.”

You looked at him with some skepticism.

“I’m not surprised to catch you sleeping in the middle of the day like this,” You let yourself sass out, “You _have_ been acting strange lately.”

Nanu was mostly unreadable. He had three (3) expressions and that was it. Somehow though, over the past couple days you were gone he had managed to learn another one.

_**Guilt.** _

It was written all over his face.

This new emotion coming from the man bothered you a little bit. He fidgeted under your gaze, clenching his hands on his knees. Clearly, you stressed the guy out.

Feeling guilty now yourself, you hesitantly reached out for him to lend some comfort. Your hand headed toward his shoulder, but was stopped midway. One of his hands had grasped yours, his gaze anywhere but at you. He placed his fingers in between your pointer finger and thumb, his palm pressed to yours. His hand was warm, a little sweaty, but gentle.

A silence hung between you as you realized this was another new Nanu expression. He was reaching out to you physically. Still avoiding looking at you, he stared at the floor. He gained some more courage and gripped your hand tighter. The way he was holding you was a little awkward, but you didn’t mind. At least it was something.

The older man let out a sigh and leaned his elbows onto his knees, slouching over. “I,” He started quietly, “I know how I am. You challenge me to think about so much more than what I’m used to being. Does that,” He finally met your gaze, “Make sense?”

You bit your lip, was silent for a moment, then nodded. Your hand grew tighter around his as you spoke,

“I think I get it.”

He pushed breath out of his nose and smirked again.

“I think I get it, too.”

His thumb rubbed your fingers gently as his gaze met the floor once again. “I know why you said what you did before. About me acting strange. I know why I have been. I don’t think that’s going to happen anymore. Probably. Maybe.” He sighed, “An effort will be made.”

You feigned shock, “Effort? From you? Dang, I don’t know what I was worried about, I must be _real special_ to you.”

Even though you were joking, you saw him freeze up for a moment. Silence rested in the room once more and you thought for a moment maybe you went too far? That was disproved though once you heard a small “heh” come from him.

It was only a little bit, but you saw him scoot closer to you.

“Yeah,” A smirk, “I _guess_ you could say you’re special to me.”

You felt your heart beat faster in your chest. This man may be a little slow on the uptake, but you knew that at the end of the day you belonged to each other. He definitely thought more of you than he let on. Bringing yourself closer to him, you adjusted your hand so your fingers were intertwining with his. He surveyed your every movement, his body unsure to relax or freeze up.

Your head rested gently on his shoulder. He smelled of rain, sleep, and a little bit of Meowth dander. If you listened closely, a light beating noise could be heard. Not sure if it was your heart or his, you still couldn't manage to stop your thumb from caressing his hand like he did to you earlier.

Nanu let out a breath again, this time your name being mumbled between his lips. You smiled up at him and responded with his name in return.

"Nanu," your warm breath hit his neck, surprising him and you felt his skin prickle.

"Just so you know, you could also say you're pretty special to me, too."

You grinned, "I _guess_."


End file.
